About us

On any given night in Seattle and King County, almost 12,000 people are experiencing homelessness, according to All Home's most recent Count Us In report. Poor health is both a cause and a consequence of homelessness. For a person living on the streets, in shelter, or otherwise without their own safe place to call home, the chronic instability and frequent chaos of daily life creates enormous barriers to health care access.

People experiencing homelessness often have trouble making and keeping medical appointments due to competing priorities in their lives-such as getting a shelter bed for the night. They often have no place to rest and recuperate, or to store medications. Too often the absence of stable, safe, and appropriate housing conspires with uncontrolled chronic illness to create a downward spiral of crisis after crisis from which recovery is extremely challenging.

As a population, people experiencing homelessness have a high prevalence of infectious diseases, mental illness, and co-occurring addiction disorders. For all of these reasons homelessness is a critical public health concern.

HCHN collaborates with nine community-based partner agencies in serving homeless adults, families, and youth/young adults. These agencies send care providers to over 60 locations throughout King County. Our flexible model allows these providers to meet people where they are, both geographically and in terms of their readiness for appointment-based services. Service sites include shelters, day centers, transitional housing programs, meal programs, and clinics. Many services are provided on the streets by outreach teams. Interdisciplinary, interagency care teams integrate a broad range of medical, mental health, substance abuse, case management, and health access services. Stand-alone services such as dental care are also provided at some clinic sites.

HCHN's work is designed to align with the All Home Continuum of Care plan to make homelessness rare, brief, and one time. Our services also align with Public Health – Seattle and King County goals by promoting health among a particularly vulnerable population and by helping prevent the spread of disease. In addition to direct patient care, HCHN provides training and consultation services for homeless agencies to assist them in establishing appropriate health and safety protocols designed to protect both staff and clients by, for example, preventing the spread of communicable diseases that can occur when people live or sleep in close proximity to others.

HCHN is part of a national movement initiated in the 1980s and first spread throughout the country through a 19-city demonstration of the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the Pew Charitable Trust. HCHN was part of the original 19-city cohort. In 1987, federal grant support was established for HCHN through the Stewart B. McKinney Homeless Assistance Act. Today, we are one of over 180 Health Care for the Homeless projects nationwide.

Our governing body: The Health Care for the Homeless Governance Council

The Health Care for the Homeless Governance Council provides strategic direction and community guidance to Public Health — Seattle & King County in effectively addressing the health needs of people experiencing homelessness. The Governance Council membership allows for continuous input from a broad range of experts, including people who are currently and formerly homeless, housing and medical providers, funders, and representatives of government agencies providing services to the homeless.

Health Care for the Homeless Network programs and services are provided through contracts with the following organizations. Staff work in interagency, multidisciplinary teams to serve homeless sites:

Catholic Community Services

Federal Way Day Center, Kent Family Center, shelters, day centers, street outreach and transitional and permanent supportive housing sites in South King County.

Country Doctor Community Health Centers

Shelter-based services for families in central Seattle (YWCA Downtown, East Cherry, and South Myrtle locations)

Homeless Youth Clinic (in partnership with University of Washington)

Evergreen Treatment Services – REACH Program

REACH case management program for chronic public inebriates at the Dutch Shisler Sobering Center

Outreach and case management conducted on the streets and at regular and other sites in Seattle including The Markham Building, Ballard Homeless clinic, ETS Methadone clinic, Dutch Shisler Sobering Center, and Navos Public Health Center.

Friends of Youth

Redmond Youth Services Center, shelters, day centers, transitional and permanent supportive housing sites and street outreach in East King County and other areas.

Harborview Medical Center

Pioneer Square Clinic:

Shelter-based services for single adults at St. Martin de Porres, Peter's Place, Markham Building, DESC Main Shelter, Compass